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Torchlight II Bumped to 2012

If you were hoping to bridge the action-RPG gap to Diablo III with Runic Games' Torchlight II, you'll have to make alternate plans. The Seattle-based studio announced today that its Torchlight follow-up has been bumped to sometime in 2012.

Originally set for launch in 2011, Torchlight II won't be ready for adventurers until sometime next year. Runic Games' Travis Baldree made the announcement today, citing the need for polish.

"So... where is Torchlight 2? Didn't you guys say that you were planning to try to release this year?" Baldree stated. "Well, yeah. We did -- and we made a good run at that. We've come to the realization, however, that getting a game of this scope up to the quality and polish level we want to achieve is going to take a little longer; especially since we want to run a small beta before release to ensure that our launch is smooth."

"The first Torchlight was released in record time, but it had plenty of issues that a little more development could have resolved," Baldree continued. "We didn't have the resources at the time to give Torchlight that treatment. Right at this moment though, we do have those resources for the sequel, and we feel strongly that we should apply them to make this the best game we can make and hopefully one that you'll enjoy and continue to want to play in the future."

Baldree said that while the studio isn't prepared to announce a new release date beyond sometime in 2012, "The amount of time we need to take it the rest of the way is relatively small."

Spy Guy says: It's been a helluva year for gaming, and an especially awesome past two months. I'll be playing catchup for a long time (particularly with Skyrim effortlessly absorbing all of the hours I sink into it), so I don't mind at all that Torchlight II won't drop until 2012.